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Lok Sabha
The Minister of State in the Ministry of External Affairs, Shri E. Ahamed informed the Lok Sabha today that the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh met President Musharraf on September 24, 2004 on the margins of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York.
They, inter alia, discussed bilateral issues. Prime Minister emphasised upon the criticality of the fulfillment of President Musharraf’s reassurance of January 6, 2004 not to permit any territory under Pakistan’s control to be used to support terrorism in any manner. The two leaders agreed that Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) will contribute to generating an atmosphere of trust and mutual understanding, and that CBMs of all categories under discussion between the two Governments should be implemented keeping in mind practical possibilities.
They agreed that possible options for a peaceful, negotiated settlement of the issue of Jammu & Kashmir should be explored in a sincere spirit and purposeful manner. Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh also conveyed to President Musharraf that India was ready to look at various options for resolving the issue of Jammu and Kashmir, but there could be no redrawing of boundaries or another partition of the country. They also agreed to look at the possibility of a gas pipeline to India via Pakistan in the larger context of expanding trade and economic relations between the two countries.
In the Joint Statement issued after the meeting on September 24, 2004, both leaders reiterated their commitment to continue with the bilateral dialogue to restore normalcy and cooperation between India and Pakistan.
This information was given to Lok Sabha today by the Minister of State for External Affairs, Shri E. Ahamed in reply to a question by S/Shri Paras Nath Yadav, Gurudas Dasgupta, P.K. Vasudevan Nair, Anandrao V. Adsul, Mahadeodao Shiwankar, Eknath M. Gaikwad, Radhunath Jha, Adhalrao Patil Shivajirao, Nikhil Kumar, Arjun Sethi, Adhir Chowdhury, Mohan Singh, Dushyant Singh, Anantkumar Hegde, Asaduddin Owaise, N. Janardhana Reddy, Suresh Kalmadi, Milind Deora, Ananta Nayak, Baleshwar Yadav and Sugrib Singh.
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